Watch What Happens When Two Pro-Gun Control College Students Shoot for the First Time

Conservative comedian and commentator Steven Crowder likes conducting social experiments where he sets up a booth in a public place with a film crew in tow and asks random pedestrians to “change my mind” about a certain hot-button issue.

Crowder recently carried out such an experiment on the topic of gun control. He met two female college students who were more than a little misinformed about guns, gun control proposals and gun laws that are already on the books, though they expressed an open mind when Crowder gently corrected some of their misconceptions.

Those two young women — neither of whom owned or had ever fired a gun — ultimately agreed to take Crowder up on his offer of a follow-up segment where they would join him at a gun range and then learn the basics of firearms, how to shoot and how to legally purchase a gun.

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At the range, Crowder began with a classroom-setting orientation for the young women, stressing the fundamentals of gun safety and instructing the students how different types of firearms work.

For this week’s edition we not only revisited the ever relevant topic of gun control, but we decided to mix things up by taking the very students we discussed the matter with to the gun range to learn the basics of firearm safety, shooting and the process of actually purchasing a gun.

As a reminder to our readers, here are some of the fundamentals of gun safety: Always treat every firearm as if it is loaded, always keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot, never point the firearm at something or someone you don’t want to shoot, and always be aware of what is around and behind your target.

Once they were familiar with these rules and the basics of the firearms themselves, it was off to the actual range, where the young college students — equipped with the requisite ear and eye protection — took turns firing a revolver and several semi-automatic handguns. They also fired an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle, as well as a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun.

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Throughout the demonstration and target practice, Crowder occasionally noted little things of a cosmetic nature about the various weapons — such as a pistol grip or magazine attachment on the shotgun — that would prohibit a potential buyer from purchasing that particular gun if an “assault weapons ban” were to be implemented.

From the way they reacted after they were done shooting, it was obvious the young women thoroughly enjoyed the experience and were more than willing to do it again. It seems their minds really had been changed in regard to shooting and owning guns.

That’s when Crowder easily convinced one of the students to go through the process of legally purchasing a firearm, which she now wanted to do.

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Since the young woman was not yet 21 years old, she was disappointed to learn that federal law prohibits her from purchasing the Walther 9mm handgun she had her eye on. Nevertheless, she gamely filled out the necessary Form 4473 paperwork and underwent the required FBI background check to ensure she wasn’t a convicted felon or in any other way prohibited from owning a gun.

She ultimately passed the background check and realized that purchasing a firearm was a more lengthy and in-depth process than she had initially believed.

“I think I was definitely scared at the beginning, but after going through the process and feeling comfortable with it, it was fine, especially after the first couple of shots,” she said.

She also admitted that she probably wouldn’t have felt as comfortable with the whole experience if Crowder hadn’t taken the time to properly introduce her to the weapons.

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In the end, both young women acknowledged that their perspective on firearms and the gun control issue had shifted.

This is an excellent example of how a simple civil debate — and taking the time to respectfully and properly introduce somebody to firearms — can totally undermine the left’s anti-gun indoctrination. It can also open up a whole new world of guns to those who otherwise would never understand why supporters of the Second Amendment believe so strongly in the right to keep and bear arms.

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